Combination vacuum tank and registering device



Dec. 21 19.26. v 1,611,832

T. T..GlVENS COMBINATION VACUUM TANK AND REGISTERING DEVICE Filed De c. 5, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. I 7170 7T6/ws/vs I I MTTORNEVYS.

Dec. 21 1926. 1,611,832

v T. T. GIVENS COMBINATION VACUUM TANK AND REGISTERING DEVICEE TTORNEYS.

Patented Dec. 21, 192a.

UNETE STATES 1,611,832 rice,

THOMAS T. GIVENS, OF MERCED, CALIFORNIA.

COMBINATION VACUUM TANK AND REGISTERING DEVICE.

Application filed December 15,

and which, furthermore, allow the quantities to be registered so as to allow the owner of a car to keep account of the amount of gasoline or other fuel used, which account may be kept for the whole life of the car or for a single trip and which may further be utilized to indicatethe amount of gasoline in the main tank by deducting the quantities delivered to the carburetor from the total amount present in the main tank at the beginning.

It is particularly proposed in the present invention to solve the problems involved in adevice of this character by structural features comparatively simple and particularly well adapted to be always kept in good condition, as will appear from the following description.

The preferred form of my invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 shows a. vertical section through my device. 7

Figure 2 a horizontal section taken along line IIII of Figure 1.

Figure 3 a horizontal section taken along line III-III of Figure 1.

While I have shown only the preferred form of the invention, I wish to have it understood that various changes or modifications may be made within the scope of the claims hereto attached ,without departing from the spirit of the invention. 7

- The tank 1 which may be cylindrical in form and covered by the top plate 2 is divided into an upper chamber 3 and a lower chamber 1 by the horizontal partition 5. An outlet 6 is provided in the bottom of the lower chamber, which latter will be referred to as the receiving chamber and communicates by means, not shown in the drawing, with the carburetor of an internal combustion engine. A discharge aperture 7 is provided in the partition 5 and a gland 8-sup- Serial No. 756,041.

ported in said aperture forms a valve seat 9. A second'port 11 forming a valve seat 12 is provided in the top plate 2 in axial alinement with the exhaust port 7 and communicafes with a short pipe 13 from which latter a horizontal pipe 14: branches off to connect with the suction side of the internal combustion engine. A gland 16 rests on the top edge of the pipe 13 and allows the valve stem 17 to be guided therethrough, which latter is sufficiently long to extend through'the two ports 12 and 7 into the lower chamber 4. The latter stem is hollow and has fixed thereto the two valves 18 and 19 mounted for operative engagement'with the two valve seats 9 and 12 respectively, lnsuch a man ner that when the valve stem is raised the engagement with either one of two collars 22 and 23 fixed to the stem so as to cause the stem to rise when bearing against the upper collar 22 and to cause the stem to drop when bearing on the lower collar 23. A heat 24 surrounds the valve stem andis movable relative thereto to a limited extent, a collar 26 slidable on the sleeve being fixed relative to thefioat by means of bolts 27, the operative length of which can be adjusted by means of nuts 28. The latter collar moves between the head 29 of the sleeve 21 and a nut 31 threaded thereon, the nut allowing the length of travel of the float relative to the sleeve to be adjusted.

The .head 29 of the sleeve has two links 2 32 pivoted thereto, as shown at 33, so as to extend in opposite directions, the extreme ends 34 of the two links being interconnected by means of two springs 36 straddling the stem 17 and tending to pull the two ends together. Intermediate points 37 of the links 32 are supported by links 38 pivoted in the cover plate 2, as shown at 39. The

springs serve to urge the head 29 of the at their inner ends to a smaller sleeve 12 arranged between the upper valve 18 and the collar 22 and at their outer ends to swinging links 43 pivoted in the cover plate, as shown at- 44. The extreme ends of the two links 11 are connected by the springs 16 and one of the two links has a projection 47 extendin therefrom which latter is adapted to push the stem 48 'ot a small valve 19 upwardly against the opposition of a spring 51,-and thereby allows atmospheric air to enter the upper chamber through port holes 02 in a cap and through the port 54.

On top of the cover plate 2 there is retatably supported between the standards 56 a ratchet wheel 57 ot a registering device. The ratchet wheel is actuated to turn clockwise by means of the bar 59 pivoted to the ring 61, as shown at (52, the ring being freely revolvable in a groove 63 of a cam (Sal li-xed to the stem 1-7 near the upper end thereof. The bar 59 carries at its lower end a roller 66 engaging with the ratchet teeth OilltlIG wheel [H and is urged into saidengagement b-y a spring67 while a band 68 prevents the bar 59 t rom swinging out too far. 7

A pipe 71 connects the upper chamber with the main supply tank 01 gasoline and is provided witha-cheek valve 72 preventing back 'iflow. V

The'device operates as follows:

Commencing with the position as illustrated in Figure 1 we may assume that the float is in its extreme lower-most position which would imply that the upper chamber is near- '-ly empty. It will be seen that at this time the upper valve 18 is removed from its seat 12 while the lower valve 19 is seated and the vent valve 4L9 is also seated. The suction of the internal combustion engine creates a vacuum within the upper chamber 3 and causes gasoline to be drawn into the same from the main supply tank through the pipe "T1. This causes the heat 2st to rise and the rising motion is comniiun'ieated to the head of the sleeve .21 a little later. As the rising motion continues, the links 32 spread and cause the springs 36 to expand until the head 29 of 'thesleeve 21'rises above the cen tral p'lai-ne *ot the springs whereupon the springs begin to contract and torce the head still further upwardly so that the latter bear-- ing on the collar "22 pushes the valve stem llupwardly engaging the valve 18 with its valve seat and litting the valve 19 from its seat, so that new the lower .port is opened and the upper por t is closed.

lVlii-le pushing the stem ulfiwardly, the springs also push the sleeve a2 upwardly and cause the same to pass the central plane of the springs 16 which contract thereafter and lock the valve stem in its po sition so that at this time both of the spring arrangements cooperate in looking the valve I stem. One of the upper links 11 in being sprin '1.

swung upwardly opens the vent valve -l9 through its projection 47.

At this time the upper valve is closed while the lower valve and the vent valve are open, that is, no further suction takes place, atmospheric air is allowed to enter the upper chamber and at the same time the upper chamber is allowed to discharge into the lower chamber through the lower port 7. The receiving chamber may not be able to accommodate all the gasoline stored in the upper chamber so that the level of gasoline in the upper chamber may sink only gradually as the gasoline is used up by the carburetor. As the float sinks its collar :26 will engage with the nut 31 and cause the sleeve 21 to come down again and to pass the central plane of the springs 36. The collar 26 has suliicient play relative to the sleeve 21 to 'by the upper springs 46, and it is only after the sleeve 21 "forces the collar 23 and thereby the stem 17 downwardly that the position of the stem is changed whereby the lower valve 19 is seated and the upper valve 18 removed trom its seat. The lowering of the valve stem causes the sleeve 12 of the upper locking arrangei'nent to pass the central plane of the upper springs lti and also discngages the projection e7 from the valve stem 18 of the vent valve so as to allow the latter to close under the influence o't its ill; this time we then have the same situation as at the beginning, that is, the lower valve is closed, the upper valve is open, and the vent valve is closed, so that the suction oi the engine allowed to draw a new quantity of gasoline into ll e upper chamber while sullieieut gasoline is accumulated in the lower chamber 1 to teed the carburetor during the time that the upper chamber fills up a; 411, Dr. this time the hollow stem 1"" allows to enter the lower chamber. it will be noted that the device becomes active in either direction only at certain stated times. that is, when the level of the gasoline reaches a maximum and a minimnn'i respectively and that the quantity all owed to enter ach time nuist necessarily be the same during each operation. 1 preferably adjust the tank to admit one-tenth of a gallon at time and the ad ustment may be made to a nicety by manipulating the nut 31, the position of which determines the time at which the float etlects the closing of the lower valve and the opening of the upper valve.

Each reciprocal motion of the stem. in the same direction means the delivery of a quantity of gasoline to the carburetor so that if all the downward strokes or all the upward strokes of tl e stem 17 are registered and counted the amount of gasoline used by the carburetor may be ascertained.

I wish to call particular attention to the fact that all the actuating means for the valve stem are arranged to operate on the same in a strictly endwise direction so that there is little danger of valve or valve seats being worn oft prematurely in certain spots. The valve stem is furthermore arranged to indicate through the position of its upper end the condition of the tank. A further advantage is that the arrangeniicnt of the valve stem relative to the parts actuating the same is such that the valve stem is freely revolvable, which allows of easy cleaning and grinding of the valves and valve seats.

1 claim:

1. A vacuum feed tank of the character described having a fuel intake port, a fuel discharge port, a suction port axially alined with the latter, a stem extending through the latter two ports having valves thereon adapted to close one or the other of the two ports and a float slidable relative to the stem having means associated therewith for ma nipulating the'stem so as to close the suction port when reaching a maximum elevation and to close the discharge port when reaching a minimum elevation, the said means being arranged to become active only at the stated times and to lock the stem until acted on in an opposite sense.

2. A vacuum feed tank of the character described having a fuel intake port, a fuel discharge port, a suction port axially alined with the latter, a stem extending through the latter two ports having valves thereon adapted to close one or the other of the two ports, a sleeve mounted on the stem with limited freedom of sliding motion adapted to operate the stem for closing the suction port when reaching a maximum elevation and for closing the discharge port when reaching a minimum elevation, a float mani iulating the sleeve and means for locking the stem in either port closing position until afiected in an opposite sense.

3. A vacuum feed tank of the character described having a fuel intake port, a fuel discharge port, a suction port axially alined with the latter, a stem extending through the latter two ports having valves thereon adapted to close one or the other of the two ports, a sleeve mounted on the stem with limited freedom of sliding motion adapted to operate the stem for closing the suction port when reaching a maximum elevation and for closing the discharge port when ri-zaching a minimum elevation, a float manipulating the sleeve and means for locking the stem in either port closing position until aliected in an. opposite sense, said means comprising links pivoted to the sleeve to extend n opposite directions, swinging links supporting the free ends thereoi and elastic means coni'iecting their free ends allowing the sleeve to pass the plane of said means but urging the same away from the plane in either direction.

4.. A tank of the character described having an intake port, a suction port, a stem with a valve thereon adapted to be seated in the port for closing the same when the stem is raised, an element slidable on the stem made to raise the same when reaching a certain point, a float operating the element, links pivoted to the element to extend in opposite directions, swinging links supporting the free ends thereof and elastic means connecting their free ends allowing the ele inont to pass the plane of said means but urging the same away from the plane in either direction.

In a device of the character described, a reciprocable stem having valves at opposite ends, a float control adapted to operate the stem for rendering one or the other of v the valves active when the float reaches one of two extreme positions and locking means operated by the float holding the stem in an active position while the float travels from one extreme to the other, said means comprising elastic means urging a given point of the stem away from a median plane in either direction and yielding to the action of the float forcing the said point through the median plane when the float reaches an extreme position in combination with adjustable means allowing the action of the float to be timed.

6.111 a device of the character described,

a receiving chamber, a collecting chamber surmounting the same, an intake valve for the collecting chamber, a discharge valve between the two chambers, a vertical stem operating both valves so as to simultaneously open one valve and close the other, a float control for the stem maintaining the intake valve open and the discharge valve closed while a measured quantity of fuel collects in the collecting chamber and thereafter opening the discharge valve and closing the intake valve so as to allow the fuel to be discharged into the receiving chamber while preventing the intake of fuel.

7. In a device of the character described, a receiving chamber, a collecting chamber surmounting the same, an intake valve for the collecting chamber, a discharge valve between the two chambers, a vertical stem op erating both valves so as to simultaneously open one valve and close the other, a float control for the-stem maintaining the intake valve open and the discharge valve closed while a measured quantity of fuel collects in the collecting chamber and thereafter opening the discharge valve and closing the intake valve so as to allow the fuel to be discharged into the receiving chamber While preventing the intake of fuel, the stem being hollow and connecting the receiving chamber with the atmosphere so as to allow fuel to be Withdrawn therefrom without creating a vacuum.

THOMAS T. GIVENS. 

